During and after the State of the Union last Tuesday, President Obama and Congressional Republicans waxed poetic about the need to cut wasteful spending in Washington. Here’s an easy place to start:

According to Corporate Accountability International, Congress spent nearly $200,000 on bottled water in just three months last year. Recent studies estimate that bottled water costs almost 2,000 times more than tap water – even though the two types of water often come from the same sources.

Besides being a waste of money, bottled water is terrible for the environment: The energy needed to produce the plastic consumption is enough to fuel three million cars for a year. Nearly one million tons of plastic bottles are discarded as litter each year, ending up in landfills, lakes and streams. What’s more, public water infrastructure in DC and around the whole country needs all the support it can get— especially from Congress.

Tell Congress to stop wasting our money and end its use of bottled water. www.change.org

To sweeten the deal, DC Water (a local utility) has even offered to provide every member of Congress with a reusable water bottle as well as free water quality testing systems for Congressional office buildings.

When members of Congress complain about wasteful spending, they should curb their own bad habits first.

Sign this petition today to tell Congress to end its use of bottled water:

www.change.org

Thanks for taking action,

Judith and the Change.org team

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Vote Imminent: Senate Takes Up Health Care Law Repeal

02/02/2011 Nativegrl77

We Can’t Go Back to Being at the Mercy of Insurance Companies

Call your Senators today and tell them to vote NO on repealing the health care law.

Call 877-667-6650

Yes, they are at it again. Are health care law opponents creating more jobs and helping our struggling economy, you ask? Nope, not until they have accomplished political priority #1 — scoring points with their base by trying to repeal the health care law, even though that would harm women’s health.

A vote in the Senate to repeal the health care law is imminent. Call your Senators today at 877-667-6650 and tell them to vote NO on repealing the health care law.

I know you’ve sent letters and called your Members of Congress in the past to tell them you support the health care law — but let me explain why we need you to pick up the phone again to protect this critical law.

Because of the health care law:

a mother who is diagnosed with breast cancer can focus on her treatment and not worry about whether her insurance company will drop her because she got sick;

a young boy who has type 1 diabetes won’t have trouble getting health care coverage because of a pre-existing condition or face a lifetime cap on coverage;

a young woman can go to her gynecologist and get a pap smear without a referral and without paying a co-pay.

Repealing the health care law will take away these important benefits — and more — that women and their families are already enjoying. It will also re-open the door to discriminatory insurance practices like charging women more than men for health care coverage and denying coverage to mothers who have had Caesarean sections and domestic violence survivors under the guise that these are “pre-existing conditions.”

Women and their families can’t go back to being at the mercy of insurance companies. Call your Senators today at 877-667-6650 and tell them to vote NO on repealing the health care law.

Please send a strong message of support for the law. Call your Senators today.

Sincerely,

Judy Waxman

Vice President for Health and Reproductive Rights

National Women’s Law Center

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Congress -what is going on in the Senate 2/2, 2/3 & 2/4

02/01/2011 Nativegrl77

The Senate Convenes at 10:00amET Friday 4, 2011

Following any Leader remarks, there will be a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each.

There will be no roll call votes during Friday’s session of the Senate.

By unanimous consent, the Senate locked in the agreement outlined below with respect to Executive nominations. As a result of this agreement, there will be 2 roll call votes at 5:30pm on Monday.

On Monday, February 7, 2011, at 4:30 pm, the Senate will proceed to Executive Session to consider the following nominations:

– Calendar #3 Paul Holmes, of AR, to be US District Judge for the Western District of Arkansas;

– Calendar #6 Diana Saldana, of TX, to be US District Judge for the Southern District of Texas;

– Calendar #8 Marco Hernandez, of OR, to be US District Judge for the District of Oregon.

There will be one hour for debate equally divided in the usual form. Upon the use or yielding back of time, Calendar #8 will be confirmed and the Senate will proceed to vote on confirmation of Calendar #3 and Calendar #6 in that order.

As a result of this agreement, at 5:30pm on Monday, February 7, there will be 2 roll call votes on confirmation of the following nominations:

– Calendar #3 Paul Holmes, of AR, to be US District Judge for the Western District of Arkansas; and

– Calendar #6 Diana Saldana, of TX, to be US District Judge for the Southern District of Texas;

———————————————————————————————-

The Senate Convenes at 9:30amET February 3, 2011

Morning business until 10:30am.

Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of S.223, the FAA Authorization bill.

The following amendments are pending to S.223:

– Whitehouse amendment #8 (laser pointers)

– Wicker amendment #14 (Excludes TSA from collective bargaining)

– Blunt amendment #5 (private screening company)

– Nelson (FL) #34 (NASA)

– Paul #21 (reduce authorization for FAA to FY2008 levels)

– Wyden #27 (increase test sites for unmanned aerial vehicles)

– Paul #19 (Davis Bacon)

Other Senators are waiting to offer their amendments. Senators will be notified when any votes are scheduled.

1-3pm morning business for the purpose of giving remarks relative to the upcoming centennial of the birth of President Ronald Reagan.

3:00pm Senator Manchin will give his maiden speech to the Senate.

The Senate has entered into an agreement that provides for 2 roll call votes around 5:20pm, if all time is used. Please note that some time may be yielded back and the votes could begin earlier.

Under the agreement, Senator Paul will call up amendment #19 (Davis Bacon). There will then be up to 30 minutes for debate equally divided between Senators Paul and Rockefeller, or their designees. There will then be up to 10 minutes for debate equally divided on the Whitehouse amendment #8 (laser pointers) between Senators Whitehouse and Hutchison, or their designees.

Upon the use or yielding back of time, the Senate will proceed to vote in relation to the following amendments:

– Whitehouse #8 (laser pointers)

– Paul #19 (Davis Bacon)

There will be no amendments or points of order in order prior to the votes.

Votes:

10: Whitehouse amendment #8: (laser pointers);

Agreed To: 96-1

11: Rockefeller motion to table the Paul amendment #19: (Davis Bacon);

Tabled: 55-42

Unanimous Consent:

Adopted S.Res.42, a resolution making Majority Party committee appointments.

Adopted S.Res.43, a resolution making Minority Party committee appointments.

Adopted S.Res.44, a resolution supporting democracy, universal rights, and the peaceful transition to a representative government in Egypt.

Adopted S.Res.45, a resolution congratulating the Eastern Washington University Football team for winning the 2010 National Collegiate Athletic Association Division 1 Football Championship Subdivision title.

—————————————-

the Senate Convenes at 10:00amET Wednesday

Following any Leader remarks, Senator Paul will be recognized for up to 20 minutes in morning business to deliver his maiden speech.

Following his remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of S.223, the Federal Aviation Administration bill.

The following amendments are pending to S.223, FAA Authorization:

– Stabenow #9 (1099 Reporting)

– McConnell #13 (Health Care Repeal)

– Levin #28 (1099 repeal)

This morning in his opening statement, Senator Reid announced to his colleagues that he spoke to Senator McConnell and they agreed to work towards having up to 3 roll call votes in the 5-6pm range this evening.

Those votes would be in relation to the following amendments to S.223, FAA Authorization:

– Possible Democratic amendment (1099 Reporting);

– Stabenow amendment #9 (1099 Reporting); and

– McConnell amendment #13 (Health Care Law Repeal).

At 5:15pm, the Senate will proceed to a series of 3 roll call votes in relation to the following amendments to S.223, FAA Authorization:

– Levin amendment #28 (repeal of 1099 with oil and gas offset);

– Stabenow amendment #9 (repeal of 1099 with unspent discretionary funds offset, exempts DoD, VA and Social Security Administration); and

– McConnell amendment #13 (repeal of health care reform).

The Levin amendment is subject to an affirmative 60-vote threshold for its adoption. No other amendments, points of order or motions are in order to these amendments prior to the votes except a Budge point of order, if applicable.

There will be 2 minutes for debate prior to each vote. The first vote will be 15 minutes in duration and the remaining 2 votes will be 10 minutes in duration.

Votes:

7: Levin amendment #28: (repeal of 1099 with oil and gas offset) (60-vote threshold);

Not Agreed To: 44-54

8: Stabenow motion to waive the Budget Act with respect to Stabenow amendment #9: (repeal of 1099 with unspent discretionary funds offset, exempts DoD, VA and Social Security Administration);

Waived: 81-17 (subsequently agreed to by consent)

9: McConnell motion to waive Budget Act with respect to McConnell amendment #13: (repeal of health care reform);

Not Agreed To: 47-51

There will be no further roll call votes tonight.

Unanimous Consent:

Adopted S.Res.30, a resolution celebrating February 2, 2011, as the 25th anniversary of ‘National Women and Girls in Sports Day’.

Adopted S.Res.36, a resolution raising awareness and encouraging the prevention of stalking by designating January 2011 as “National Stalking Awareness Month”.

Adopted S.Res.37, a resolution recognizing the goals of Catholic Schools Week.

Adopted S.Res.38, a resolution congratulating Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on its 100th anniversary.

Adopted S.Res.39, a resolution congratulating the Auburn University football team for winning the 2010 Bowl Championship Series National Championship.

Adopted S.Res.40, a resolution congratulating the University of Akron men’s soccer team on winning the National Collegiate Athletic Associate Division I Men’s Soccer Championship.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Egyptian activists are asking for your help

02/01/2011 Nativegrl77

Change.org members in Egypt are asking all of us to support them.

Late on Saturday night, two pro-Democracy activists — a young man and a young woman who’ve asked that we not use their names out of fear of imprisonment and torture — started a petition on Change.org, dictating the text to an ally over a phone line because the government has shut down the internet throughout the country.click on the link >> http://www.change.org/petitions/support_the_peoples_revolution_in_egypt_

These Egyptians — activists participating in what is being called the “January 25 Movement” — believe we’re at a possible tipping point within the country. The Egyptian army has is siding with the protesters, the President has already been forced to dismiss his entire cabinet, and there are unconfirmed reports that some members of the ruling family are leaving the country.

These Egyptian activists believe that a flood of international support right now can help to change the course of Egypt’s history for decades to come.

This is extremely urgent — please don’t wait to take action. Click here now to add your name to this critical petition for democracy started by these two Egyptian activists on behalf of the January 25 Movement:

http://www.change.org/petitions/support_the_peoples_revolution_in_egypt_

Thanks for taking action today,

Patrick and the Change.org Team

P.S. Here’s the text of the petition: (You can see the original version in Arabic) >>below http://www.change.org/petitions/support_the_peoples_revolution_in_egypt_

On January 25, we the people of Egypt took to the streets to demand our rights!

We are not unified by one party, class or religion: we are not Muslim and we are not Christian, we are not rich and we are not poor – we are the multifaceted people of Egypt – Muslims and Christians and Egyptians of all classes.

We demand our civil, political and human rights.

We demand the immediate resignation of the president and parliament.

We demand a new constitution.

We demand free and fair elections.

We demand the complete and total release of all political prisoners and detainees.

We demand the return of open access to all communication networks.

We demand that the police stop shooting at us, stop their brutality and stop their attacks on journalists.

We are the January 25 movement, and we are not going to stop until our demands are met!

We call on Egyptians and our international supporters to sign this petition of support, which will be sent to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, officials in the interior and foreign ministries, and Egyptian embassies all over the world.

Add your name:

http://www.change.org/petitions/support_the_peoples_revolution_in_egypt_